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Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

forbes.com

21–30 of 91 posts

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#21
post #20
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The irony is strong in this one: Not building airports would definitely improve the situation as a whole.

Of course, depopulating the earth will also accomplish that.

Don't have to go that far. Choosing to not have children or choosing to have fewer children would be a good start.

From what I understand, taking better care of the children we have so they have a better chance to reach healthy adulthood is the best way to suppress child birth rates. I say we because parents don't own their children. The children belong to all of us, the community.

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#22

I have my doubts about this. In my experience, a house full of cannabis plants photosynthesizing full tilt under 15,000 watts of lights would still show elevated CO2 when two people went to it and tended it. Maybe the algae get around that, but I need to see some numbers. >A human breathes about 9.5 tonnes of air in a year, but oxygen only makes up about 23 per cent of that air, by mass, and we only extract a little…

This is going off topic but what an interesting idea... Can plants work day and night if you give them light 24x7? I assume they don't need to rest or get tired?

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#23
post #21
post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course, depopulating the earth will also accomplish that.

Don't have to go that far. Choosing to not have children or choosing to have fewer children would be a good start. From what I understand, taking better care of the children we have so they have a better chance to reach healthy adulthood is the best way to suppress child birth rates. I say we because parents don't own their children. The children belong to all of us, the community.

That thought is considered sacrilegious for some reason. If we would just start shrinking back to healthy population levels, a lot of problems would disappear. But nooo, an impossible reduction of everyones climate footprint by 10% is offset within 10 years of population growth instead.

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#24
post #16

I bought a CO2 meter, and discovered my office had elevated CO2 levels (sometimes going over 1000). Cracking a window solved the problem. Want to reduce CO2 levels outside? Plant trees. They're solar-powered green machines, turning CO2 into building materials, paper, and fuel.

> Want to reduce CO2 levels outside? Plant trees. This thread is about indoor air pollution. Trees aren't going to help with that. The best way to reduce it is to open a window. For outdoor air pollution, planting trees can actually increase it[1]. Even in ideal conditions, planting trees is not nearly enough to stop climate change. The best way to fix the CO2 problem is stop producing it, not to try to clean it up.…

> planting trees is not nearly enough to stop climate change

The solution will be a mix of approaches, none of them in isolation doing the whole job.

> For outdoor air pollution, planting trees can actually increase it

Only if by doing so you remove vegetation to plant them.

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#25
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't have to go that far. Choosing to not have children or choosing to have fewer children would be a good start. From what I understand, taking better care of the children we have so they have a better chance to reach healthy adulthood is the best way to suppress child birth rates. I say we because parents don't own their children. The children belong to all of us, the community.

That thought is considered sacrilegious for some reason. If we would just start shrinking back to healthy population levels, a lot of problems would disappear. But nooo, an impossible reduction of everyones climate footprint by 10% is offset within 10 years of population growth instead.

Isn't world population supposed to drop from now on?

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#26
post #16

I bought a CO2 meter, and discovered my office had elevated CO2 levels (sometimes going over 1000). Cracking a window solved the problem. Want to reduce CO2 levels outside? Plant trees. They're solar-powered green machines, turning CO2 into building materials, paper, and fuel.

> Want to reduce CO2 levels outside? Plant trees. This thread is about indoor air pollution. Trees aren't going to help with that. The best way to reduce it is to open a window. For outdoor air pollution, planting trees can actually increase it[1]. Even in ideal conditions, planting trees is not nearly enough to stop climate change. The best way to fix the CO2 problem is stop producing it, not to try to clean it up.…

> The best way to fix the CO2 problem is stop producing it, not to try to clean it up.

I'd have to disagree. Stopping the production is important, but that doesn't solve the problem, it just doesn't make it worse. A true fix would always include removing some CO2 from the atmosphere, however that may be done.

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#27
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't have to go that far. Choosing to not have children or choosing to have fewer children would be a good start. From what I understand, taking better care of the children we have so they have a better chance to reach healthy adulthood is the best way to suppress child birth rates. I say we because parents don't own their children. The children belong to all of us, the community.

That thought is considered sacrilegious for some reason. If we would just start shrinking back to healthy population levels, a lot of problems would disappear. But nooo, an impossible reduction of everyones climate footprint by 10% is offset within 10 years of population growth instead.

This will cause serious problems and many developed countries and also in China, especially when combined with increasing life expectancies.

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#28

This is super interesting! Sounds from the article like the main point is to remove CO2 from the air to improve air for humans. That's already really exciting. In essence it's a CO2 scrubber right? So how does this compare to devices built with the goal to remove CO2 with the goal to reduce climate change? Edit: To answer my own question, this probably does little. They have a home use version that supposedly removes…

I feel like i would rather have the airport full of plants.

Airports are stresful and noisey. Imagine how calming it would be with greenery all over the place absorbing the noise.

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#29
post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Want to reduce CO2 levels outside? Plant trees. This thread is about indoor air pollution. Trees aren't going to help with that. The best way to reduce it is to open a window. For outdoor air pollution, planting trees can actually increase it[1]. Even in ideal conditions, planting trees is not nearly enough to stop climate change. The best way to fix the CO2 problem is stop producing it, not to try to clean it up.…

> The best way to fix the CO2 problem is stop producing it, not to try to clean it up. I'd have to disagree. Stopping the production is important, but that doesn't solve the problem, it just doesn't make it worse. A true fix would always include removing some CO2 from the atmosphere, however that may be done.

I dont think trees do that unless you bury them once they are full grown.

Normal tree life cycle is capture some co2, die, rot and release it all back into the air.

Re: Pittsburgh Airport installs an algae air purifier

#30
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That thought is considered sacrilegious for some reason. If we would just start shrinking back to healthy population levels, a lot of problems would disappear. But nooo, an impossible reduction of everyones climate footprint by 10% is offset within 10 years of population growth instead.

Isn't world population supposed to drop from now on?

If you believe world3 was correct, yes, we're nearing the decade where it happens, but this won't be by choice.

Basically our production+pollution seems to strain our renewable ressources more than our technological advances protect them. In most world3 scenarii it means a decrease in food production that lead to a population decrease.

It such a simple and interesting model, i find it sad that people tend to link it to 'the population bomb' which wasn't based on anything but gut feelings.

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